Take a Bite of Jolly New London

May 19-24, 2014 • Limited to 15 guests

London has taken center stage on the current
international food scene. Young chefs using fresh ingredients to mix
flavors and the techniques of British colonial heritage are
winning top awards for their cutting-edge restaurants.
London now holds spots #7 and #13 on The World's
50 Best Restaurants list. And who would have thought
that a London pub would earn a coveted Michelin
star rating?

Be among the first to taste your way through
this exciting new culinary capital. With local
guides and foodie celebrities opening doors
behind the scenes, you’ll experience the best
of this up-and-coming scene.

♦ Have high tea at Fortnum and Mason, the department store lauded as a bastion of British culture.

♦ Watch as fresh salmon arrive from Scotland at H. Forman & Son and are prepared using third-generation expertise to create a smoked salmon available only at the finest
purveyors.

♦ Dine at Yotam Ottolenghi’s Nopi restaurant, perhaps the flagship of the new British culinary trend toward simple, innovative, and unforgettably flavorful food. Meet the
other half
of the Ottolenghi team, partner Sami Tamimi and find out more about London's new culinary wave.

If you'd like to extend your London stay, just reserve the 2-night weekend extension when you book.

Luxury Accommodations • Delicious Meals • Tastings

Pub Visits • Hands-on Cooking Class

Let us help plan your adventure

There are two easy ways to book your trip. Make your deposit online and our trip concierge will call you as soon
as possible to reserve the dates of your choice. Or, if you prefer, call our trip concierge directly at 866.392.3302 to take care of everything over the phone.

Take a bite of jolly new London: May 19 - 24, 2014

$4990 per person, double occupancy. Single supplement fee: $1275.
Airfare not included. A non-refundable deposit of $500.00 is required to reserve your space.

Take a bite of jolly new London

Daily Itinerary

Monday, May 19

Arrive in London, a city with a buzz and diversity energized by the 2012 Olympics. Most
international flights arrive at Heathrow Airport west of the city or Gatwick Airport to the south. Information on the best way to your hotel will be provided.

Check into The Montague on the Gardens, your 4-star hotel nestled in quaint Bloomsbury, in the heart of the city. It overlooks peaceful gardens but is conveniently central—the British Museum
is just around the corner, and you're within walking distance of Soho, Covent Garden and excellent shopping on Oxford and Bond Streets. Each morning, you'll enjoy your choice of a full English or
Continental breakfast.

Relax and unpack with a pot of tea in your room. Meet your fellow travelers and guides at an early evening welcome reception while enjoying the very British Pimm’s Cup cocktail and chatting
about the week ahead.

We'll take a short walk to dinner at Moti Mahal, the chic London outpost of the celebrated Delhi restaurant and an impressive example of India's influence on British cuisine. With 1.4
million residents of Indian descent, London boasts some of the best Indian cuisine outside of India. Inspired by the culinary roots of North India's Grand Trunk Road, chef and cookbook author
Anirudh Arora creates time-honored dishes by balancing spices with a light touch especially evident in his superb breads and rice dishes.

Tuesday, May 20

Make an early-morning behind-the-scenes visit to H.Forman & Son, a third-generation-owned
smokehouse. Watch as fresh salmon arrive from Scotland and, with owner Lance Forman as your guide, observe as they are skinned, smoked, marinated in beetroot, gin and herbs, or other seasonings,
sliced and packaged—all by hand. Meet Darren Maston, who holds the Guinness World Record for fastest time to bone and slice a smoked salmon, and is also a great storyteller. Then enjoy a generous
tasting brunch that includes a brownie rumored to be the best the Queen herself has ever tasted.

Return to hotel for a late-morning break before traveling to the Mayfair area.

The Fortnum & Mason department store was founded on its current site as a grocery three centuries ago. It has built an iconic reputation by taking extraordinary care over the origins of its
high-quality foods. Every sprout, lobster, truckle and rib comes directly from suppliers known personally.

Though food may be first at Fortnum’s, the store itself is beautiful, and their signature tins and boxes filled with teas, biscuits and other fine foods make much-appreciated and easily transported
memories to take home.

We'll enjoy high tea in the Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon (dedicated in 2012 by the Queen, accompanied by Their Royal Highnesses the Duchess of Cornwall and the Duchess of Cambridge). The
tradition of taking tea and “that little bit of something” between lunch and dinner has long been part of British culture. Fortnum’s high tea is substantial and includes a mini tasting of three
varieties of their unique teas, delicate sandwiches, exquisite cakes and a sample of honey made by their own bees.

The rest of the afternoon and evening are free for you to plan. The Mayfair area where you'll be has many stores with excellent shopping. If you're interested in theater tickets for the evening,
recommended websites will have been sent to you in advance.

Wednesday, May 21

Celia Brooks, an American expat, passionate cook, food writer and TV personality, will guide you
through a colorful food experience in the heart of London's West End. It’s a morning of sipping and supping the delights of Covent Garden, uncovering the neighborhood's true foodie gems.
Hear colorful stories of this checkered neighborhood’s history as you sample the latest hip ethnic foods and thoroughly British baked goods, as well as the best wines coming from small Italian
vineyards. Don't miss an Egyptian street food dish of macaroni, rice and lentils served at food writer Anissa Helou’s café and a stop at London’s oldest restaurant for a bit of refreshment in a
cozy nook of the cocktail lounge upstairs.

We'll take a short walk to the 5-star Mandarin Hotel for lunch at Heston Blumenthal’s highly acclaimed Dinner. The fixed lunch menu here is exquisite, featuring simple, contemporary dishes
inspired by Britain’s gastronomic history, with recipes dating back to the 16th century. The wine pairings are delicious, the desserts unbelievable and the ambiance world class. After lunch, we'll
tour the open kitchen to see how the chefs work their magic.

As you leave the Mandarin Hotel, you'll be directly across from the famed Harvey Nichols department store and fine shopping on Knightsbridge Street. You're free to discover London on your own for
the rest of the afternoon.

It's hard to imagine anything more quintessentially London than having a pint in a neighborhood pub. Beer in England pre-dates other alcoholic drinks and has been brewed continuously since
prehistoric times. England is known for its top-fermented cask beer (also called real ale) which finishes maturing in the cellar of the pub rather than at the brewery and is served with only
natural carbonation.

We'll enjoy a dynamite pub dinner and beer tasting at Michelin 1-star-rated The Harwood Arms, the only Michelin-rated pub in London. Their mission is to provide Londoners with a really
relaxed venue for eating the finest British produce, cooked amazingly well, accompanied by excellent beer and wine at a great price. The staff has a special fondness for local ingredients—much of
the game on the menu is a result of their own hunting trips.

Thursday, May 22

Today, we'll take a half-day cooking class at state-of-the-art Waitrose Cookery School. Fun and informal, this hands-on, half-day class is perfect for the enthusiastic amateur. You’ll start with a demonstration of technique in their theater, then move into your fully equipped work station. We'll learn the secrets of preparing a 3-course meal in the new style of British cuisine—a meal you'll be able to make at home for family and friends. You'll savor a glass of wine with your fellow travelers while enjoying the lunch you've just prepared in what seems like an amazingly short time for such good food.

You're free to enjoy the rest of the afternoon and evening on your own, with suggestions given as needed.

Friday, May 23

Early in the morning, before the peak rush of shopping, we'll discover the secrets and delights
of Borough Market, London's oldest and most renowned food market. The market began centuries ago on the road leading from the walled metropolis of London to the ports and towns to the south.

Today you can find a huge range of exceptional British and international products at the covered market. There are bargains to be had and products ranging from the lowly sardine
to elegant truffles. You'll also find advice, recipes and cooking techniques for either daily needs or special treats.

Borough Market-certified guide Celia Brooks leads you on a magical mystery tasting tour of this bustling market, introducing you to the artisans who offer
the best and most unique flavors. You’ll sample freshly grilled scallops served to you by a gentleman who, on other days, can be found diving in chilly waters to sustainably harvest each one.
Sample kangaroo and ostrich meat, Spanish Iberico ham, homemade pasta and Turkish meze. Compare three English wines and end your visit with a unique chocolate experience.

Next we'll head just around the corner to Neal’s Yard Dairy, the consummate purveyor of fine British Isle farm cheeses. Neal’s Yard buys its cheeses from over 70 farms around Britain and
Ireland and sells them in their two shops and to restaurants around the world. To maintain quality, as well as to see what’s happening on the farms, they regularly visit and befriend their
suppliers.

Today, we'll be making and learning to appreciate and differentiate English cheeses. We'll sample eight local farm cheeses, like Cheddar, Caerphilly and Stilton, learning the qualities and origins
of each, and pairing them with an appropriate wine or beer.

The rest of your afternoon is free.

In the evening, we'll have our farewell dinner at Nopi—classic, delicious food centered on fresh ingredients, simple preparations and robust flavors. These rising stars of the new British
food scene, Yotam Ottolenghi and his partner Sami Tamimi, “have quietly changed the way people in Britain shop and cook and eat,” says The New Yorker.

In their own words: “Like the market vendor, we make the best of what we have and don’t interfere with it too much. We keep food as natural as possible, deliberately avoiding complicated cooking
methods … Unfussiness and simplicity in food preparation are, for us, the only way to maintain the freshness of a dish."

Their dishes showcase striking flavors and unusual ingredients—like hibiscus and tea-smoked quail with kumquat and clementine relish—and convey their enjoyment of using food as an artistic
palette.

At two marble tables in front of the open kitchen, we'll share tapas-style dishes of Ottolenghi classics: twice-cooked baby chicken, spiced hake wrapped in banana leaf and more. As a special treat, Sami Tamimi will visit with you and answer any questions you may have about the restaurant and their food philosophy. It’s a perfect conclusion to your exploration of the new British culinary scene.

Saturday, May 24

Your culinary tour ends after breakfast on Saturday morning as you say farewell to new friends over
coffee.

Optional extension Saturday and Sunday, May 24 and 25

If you'd like to extend your stay in London for the weekend, reserve two additional nights in your
same hotel room, complete with full buffet breakfast and all taxes, plus a one-day sightseeing pass on the double-decker bus. You can reserve the extended weekend package at the time of booking.